Federal Writers' Project – Life Histories/2020/Fall/105/Section 061/Floyd Abernathy

Overview of Floyd Abernathy
Interviewed by Lawerence Evans in early 1939 for the Federal Writer’s Project, Floyd Abernathy grew up in Alabama and became a small-town doctor for his rural community.

Early Life
In the late 1800’s, Floyd L. Abernathy was born in Prattville, Alabama to a family line of preachers and doctors. Since he was a preacher’s son, he became used to moving from town to town. He grew up hearing interesting stories and tales from his great-grandfather which inspired him to become a doctor.

Education
After graduating high school, he attended Southern College in Greensboro to complete two years of pre-med work. Abernathy wanted to continue his education, but knew his family could not afford it, so he ended up living with his uncle while attending the University of Alabama. In 1916, he graduated after riding his bike to school every day to save money.

World War 1
In order to get his license and have his own practice, Abernathy was required to work in a hospital for two years. Instead, the war began and he became a First Lieutenant. He mainly took care of people sickened with influenza in different camps such as Pike, Oglethorpe, and Merritt. Occasionally, he did care for other men's diseases and injuries.

Life as a Doctor
Most of the time, Abernathy did not have to care for an extraordinary, rare problems. He worked with entire families and in reality, almost everyone in his small town. He could care for wounds that just needed a few stitches all the way to acting a midwife. Since he was the only doctor around, he ended up helping a lot of women birth their children. To show how much he cares for these patients, he would send them a birthday card every year no matter where they moved to.

Family
Floyd Abernathy met his wife Lucille during his time as the Assistant State Health Officer. They moved to Foley, Alabama where they had two children named Mary Nell and Tommy. Even though Abernathy did not make a ton of money as he cared for people no matter what their financial situation was, his wife stayed home and cared for the children. To support their household, Abernathy and his wife rented some bungalows out around town to bring in extra money.

Influenza Pandemic
As training and weaponry production in the United States was becoming more vital for soldiers overseas during World War 1, many things were suddenly brought to a halt. Not only did this virus stop the military and manufacturing, the health care field were swiftly transferred to camps to care for those that fell to the contagious, unknown disease instead of your typical injuries and wounds. When comparing deaths from the battle and influenza, a reported 16 million people died from the war while around 50 million were killed during the pandemic. As a result, life expectancies dropped and a proclaimed 25% of the United State's population was impacted. Most were impacted during the second wave of the virus as it took over crowded camps and units.

Paying for College
During the Great Depression, both families and the government was struggling to stay afloat. Colleges were dependent on aid from the government that was not available anymore. Many students had to make sacrifices and drop out of school to help their families. Those that were able to stay enrolled relied on the New Deal. Some students found new living arrangements and even rode their bike or walked to classes instead of driving even if they lived far away from campus.

Health Care during the Great Depression
As families were losing money and investments left and right, their diets were forced to change as well. Sometimes people still ate the same kind of food, but just a lot less of it. Due to the Dust Bowl, soil had little to no nutrients so vegetables and grains were bland and not even able to grow in certain areas such as the midwest. Many families relied on corn meal, pork, molasses, peas, and flour. As a result, doctors and nurses had to care for the people while still trying to create income for themselves. Smaller nurses’ stations were built to reach out to those in more rural areas.

Women in the Home
Even before the Great Depression, it was frowned upon for women to work outside of the home most of the time. For example, nine states banned married women from working. The few employment opportunities that women were allowed usually involved teaching and clerical jobs that were seen fit for women. The stigma surrounding married women envisioned them staying home all day to care for the children, cleaning, folding the laundry, and having dinner ready when the husband got home from his job. In reality, a lot of women were desperate to find jobs because all they wanted to do was help their struggling families.